Sacred Place
by eJemima
Summary: When Kol left his family with Rebekah, where did they go and who did they meet? Klaus found peace as Hope's father, Elijah decided to get serious with Hayley and Rebekah continues on her quest for true love, but what about Kol? After enduring death and heartbreak, what will be, the wildest of the Mikaelson siblings, happy ending?


**A/N:** So, I loved the fact that Kol and Rebekah just drove off into the darkness, after Kol finally had enough of all the BS and decides to leave his family in episode 04x03. It created an exciting opportunity and I was totally inspired! Where did he go and who did he meet?

This is, for once, not a story centered on Klaus and it's my first of those! Kol is my second favourite vampire, so I decided he deserved a story of his own and in the aftermatch of his tragic loss and well, everything he's been through, he deserves a little happiness and peace, like his siblings.

This story is actually kinda connected to my other stories, with the world of Iris and the Black Panthers.

This is a little story about the youngest Mikaelson brother and the Black Panthers' second in command - the first ever siphoner... ;)

* * *

 **(…)**

2020 A.D.

Anna slammed the door behind her and threw her keys in the glass bowl standing on the small drawer in the hall. She hung her coat on the staircase knob next to the large mirror and picked up her bag of humble groceries.

The sound of her heels against the creme colored tile floor echoed in the room, as the siphoner walked from the hall to her kitchen, turning on the lights on her way. The automatic pool and garden lights lit up just a little on the other side of the floor to ceiling windows. Small lights from ships could be seen on the sea in the distance, beyond the garden. It had gotten late at the office again. Dealing with pesky humans and unsettled supernaturals could drag out in an unending boredom.

The brunette put away her groceries and took out a bottle of blood from the fridge.

Anna sighed relieved, taking a large gulp of the cooling blood and felt herself letting go of some stress which had gathered during the day. She refilled the glass and opened the glass door, heading out in her garden.

The siphoner dropped herself in the lounger facing the dark ocean and closed her eyes, as a cool ocean breeze surrounded her. It was late Spring and the weather was quickly getting warmer in the little South European coast city. Anna had lived in this place for the past few decades, after feeling a need to get out of the stress of the big city. It was quiet and somewhat isolated here, which was something the siphoner greatly appreciated. The little village down the road, had only a few hundred inhabitants, of whom most of them were elderly people, enjoying their retirement quietly. The village had a single market and a small bakery but other than that, the nearest shops was in the main city, half an hour drive into the country.

"Italy huh?"

The sudden voice next to her ripped her out of the beginning slumber and alerted her in seconds. She sat up straight and looked to her side. Despite the late night, Anna had no problem seeing the man squatting next to her, thanks to the lights from her house, garden and the full moon.

"Kol...?" She asked stunned, seeing the man next to her, a mischievous grin on his lips as he glanced at her.

"Hello love, it's been a while." He said and winked before looking back at the house behind them, "Quite the place you've got here. Classy Italian architecture, modern décor and large widows giving a nice ocean view anywhere in the house. The sun set from your bedroom was quite extraordinary."

"You were in my bedroom?" Anna asked somewhat crossed that he had wandered her house without her knowing about it. Kol smirked and looked back at her.

"I'd offer you a drink, but I imagine you've already helped yourself to one." Anna said, not hiding her disapproval of the vampire's familiarity in her house.

"I did." Kol answered cheerfully, "It was very delicious, thank you."

Anna downed the remaining of the blood and put the glass down.

"How long?" She asked the original quietly, her eyes fixed on nothing in the horizon. Kol followed her gaze and paused for a moment before he answered.

"Ten years." He answered quietly, "Give or take."

Anna got up suddenly and stormed back towards the house.

"Anna!" Kol speed after her, graphing her arm in the door. The siphoner tore her arm from his grasp and pushed him away from her, giving him an angry glare.

"Ten years?!" She exclaimed furiously, "Do you have any idea how long I've waited, how worried I was?" Anna shouted, tears emerging in grey eyes, "A hundred years, Kol! Do you have any idea just how much I've missed you?!"

Kol took a step back, surprised at the woman's outburst at first but then gave her a gentle smile, hearing her words.

"I do know." He said softly and took her hand in his, "I heard you." Kol glanced down at their connected hands, "Somehow your voice broke through the dagger's magic." He looked back up at her, meeting tearful grey eyes, "I even felt your tears and warm hands on my skin." Kol smiled gently and pulled the woman in a little, "It gave me a little relief every time you visited, so thank you."

"Then why?" Anna asked, her voice breaking, as tears began anew, "Why only now? Why didn't you come before? If you've been un-daggered for ten years, then-"

"I couldn't." Kol interrupted and sighed shaking his head, "You have no idea how much has happened the past decade. People out to kill me and the never ending, unnerving family drama."

Anna let herself be pulled in completely in the original's embrace and let out a tired sigh.

"And now?" She mumbled, her face buried in his shirt, "Is it over?"

Kol huffed and shook his head.

"It's never over." He said and pulled Anna closer to him, resting his chin on the top of her head, "We're immortals Anna, we don't have that kind of luxury." Kol said with a hint of regret, "However, there has been some positive changes. My parents are gone for good and my siblings have changed. We've stopped fighting and backstabbing each other. At least for now, the Mikaelson family is at peace."

Anna moved a little and looked up at him, eyes wide in surprise.

"That's huge!" She said impressed and with a hint of relief, "So no more daggering then?"

Kol smiled and shook his head.

"No more daggering." He confirmed, "Surprisingly, Nik has changed and become somewhat more tolerable. I told you, a lot has happened." The vampire added, when he saw Anna's surprised look. The siphoner grinned and pulled Kol down, clasping his lips to hers.

 **(...)**

Anna felt the soft sheets against naked skin and the warmth of the blanket, shielding her against the morning breeze, coming from the slightly ajar glass door, leading out on the small bedroom patio. The breeze brought the fresh smell of the sea with it, teasing the nostrils. The lulling sound of the waves collided with the seagull's squawking. The early morning sun reflected in the still water of the topaz blue ocean, magnifying the bright light shining through the darkened windows.

She moved a little, stretching out, when she felt the warm body next to her. The siphoner smiled and turned in bed. He was still sleeping. Brown eyes closed and lips slightly parted, as he breathed calmly. Anna reached out a caressed his face softly, making him move a little in his sleep.

A hundred years. It was still hard to believe it had been that long. With the way feelings, had been conveyed the night before, it felt like they'd never been apart and were just starting out.

England, 1164 A.D.

 _"You know," Kol stopped momentarily as a voice broke the sheltering darkness around him, "if you want to carelessly walk around draining people, then there's a perfectly wars going on all around Europe right now."_

 _Kol looked up and dropped the castle servant, finding a woman leaned against the castle wall close to him. She was wearing a single dark colored dress, despite the cold weather. Brown hair was braided and pulled to one side and the full moon reflected in grey eyes._

 _Kol dried the blood from his lips with a dirty shirt and stepped closer to her._

 _"Already been there." He answered looking at her closely as he drew nearer, "Human conflicts were never really my thing, it more my brothers'..."_

 _The woman chuckled and looked away._

 _"Yeah, I know what you mean. My friend is the same." She said and looked back at Kol, "I'm more of an enjoyer of life. Parties, luxury, expensive foods and drink and the blood of healthy young nobles. Preferably aroused, one way or the other..." She added with a twisted grin, revealing a pair of perfect white fangs. Kol blinked, a little confused at first, when it dawned on him._

 _"You're a vampire?" He asked somewhat surprised. The vampire thing was still rather new, and it was rare for the Mikaelsons to run into other vampires, especially ones they hadn't turned themselves. Kol took a closer look at the woman, however, nothing about her seemed familiar to him._

 _"No, I'm certainly not." She laughed and was inches from him in a second, "Well, not 'just' a vampire anyway..." Her voice was husky, as she drove long fingers through his hair. Kol felt a cold shiver and_ _suddenly found himself unable to move_ _, as he stared into the grey eyes of the woman in front of him._

 _"_ _Such power…" She whispered and crooked her head as she stilled her hand, "Wait…"_

 _Kol felt another chill and shook his shoulders as he broke away from her stare. The woman took a step back, watching him intensely with a wondrous look._

 _"_ _You're one of them, aren't you?" She asked quietly, with a hint of excitement, "The original vampires."_

 _Kol froze for a moment, then looked back at her, finding her staring at him curiously. This, in itself, surprised the vampire. So far, whenever someone had realized who he, or either of his siblings were, they had reacted with fear or hatred. Nothing like this. The woman moved, started circling the original with a thoughtful look._

 _"_ _You're hardly Niklaus and obviously not Rebekah," She pondered as she came to a hold in front of Kol again, "Which makes you either Elijah or Kol?"_

 _The original gave her a confused look, as the woman became more and more of a mystery to him. He opened his mouth to ask her, just who she was, when she spoke first._

 _"_ _Kol." She said with a crooked grin and gave him a mischievous look, "You have to be Kol. The fun favorite brother."_

 _"_ _Excuse me?" Kol asked, starting to feel frustrated with the woman, "Who are you?"_

 _"_ _Oh right… sorry…" She said, somewhat flustered, cheeks turning slightly pink in the dim lights, "My friend has told me so much about your family, I feel like I already know you…"_

 _"_ _Your friend? Who is…?" The vampire asked with a raised brow, not knowing about anyone who could possible pass on a positive picture of him as his family, as it seemed this woman had gotten._

 _"_ _Iris." The woman said bluntly, "Iris Mikaelson." Kol froze by the mention of a name he hadn't heard spoken aloud in decades, however, not a day had gone by, where he hadn't thought about the person carrying that exact name. It still hurt, he realized, hearing her name. The deep wound she had left behind had yet to heal completely and for a second, Kol wondered if it was the same with his brother. Was he trying to bury the loss of her with the violence and the blood, like Kol himself felt he had been doing?_

 _"_ _That's impossible." The original said bitterly, "Iris died 40 years ago."_

 _This, Kol had realized, was one of the worst things about being an immortal vampire._

 _Feeling everything stronger._

 _The euphoria and excitement of the hunt, the blood and power, but also the occasional love and devastating losses._

 _The woman gave him a small smile and looked down momentarily, putting her hands behind her back, as she took a step closer to him._

 _"_ _Well yeah, technically she did," She pointed out, looking at him with a knowing smile, "however she died with Niklaus' blood in her system."_

 _"_ _What…?" He asked puzzled, as this was completely new to him. His brother hadn't mentioned anything about giving her his blood, when Kol, Rebekah and Elijah had found the two. At that point she was already dead, and Klaus seemed to believe it was permanent. They had even buried her. Kol looked back at the woman, as she spoke again._

 _"_ _At least that's her theory," The woman said with a small shrug, "She's been looking for you guys for the past 40 years and found me along the way and made me immortal, like her." She explained and looked back up at Kol expectantly._

 _"_ _Do you know where she is now? Is she with you?" Kol needed to know, finding it hard to believe what the stranger was telling him to be true. If there was any chance for Iris to be alive, Kol needed to find her._

 _"_ _Unfortunately no. I told you I had a friend who like to meddle with the human affairs, right?" The woman pointed out and blinked at him, "Chances are that she's already encountered Niklaus or Elijah on the battlefield then." She bit her lip and took a step closer, "Truth be told, I really wanted to meet you, Kol Mikaelson."_

 _Kol looked down at the woman in front of him. Locking eyes with the smaller brunette, as he raised a questioning brow._

 _"_ _Iris told me all about you." She began explaining her statement, "She told me how you taught her to hunt, fight and most importantly, about magic." She paused and put a hand on his chest, never taking her eyes from him, "She has said you were quite the expert on magic. All kinds of magic."_

 _Kol tried to ignore the warmth spreading from her hand's touch, shaking off the unknown and slightly uncomfortable sensation rising within him. The original gave her a smug smile and straightened up._

 _"_ _Did she now?" He questioned with a hint of pride, "And what is that to you?"_

 _The woman blinked at him and dropped her playful look, removing her hand from his chest._

 _"_ _Really?" She asked incredulously, "For a supposed expert on magic, you're not that sharp, are you?" She held up her hand in defense, as Kol took a step forward with a threatening demeanor, "It was not meant as an offense, I just thought you would have noticed by now."_

 _"_ _Noticed what?!" Kol snapped, far from amused by the cheeky woman. She didn't answer him at first, but held out her hand and mumbled a few words under her breath. The original took a surprised step back, when fire suddenly emerged from the palm of her hand._

 _"_ _Noticed my magic." She finally answered and looked from the flames to him, "Iris calls me a hybrid, one who is both witch and vampire."_

 _"_ _That's not possible." Kol said, recovering from his initial surprise, but not able to take his eyes off the fire, "Witches are the servants of nature and vampires abominations, there is no way to be both. If there was, I would know, believe me."_

 _The woman crooked a smile at him._

 _"_ _It seems you do not know everything then, Kol Mikaelson." She said and closed her hand, making Kol look back at her, "It seems you and I can teach each other a thing or two. I am Anna, by the way."_

Italy, 2020 A.D.

Anna smiled, remembering the first time she met the youngest of the Mikaelson brothers. A meeting, which was only the beginning of a close friendship, evolving into something more and deeper, decades later. What began as a shared interest in magic, continued throughout eight centuries with friendship and love, ups and downs, happy and sad times. Anna pushed aside a lock of hair to get a better, full look at the small, well-known features of his face. His lips crooked into a smile, telling Anna that he was awake, before he slowly opened his eyes. Their eyes locked for a long moment, without any of them saying a word.

"Slept well?" The siphoner asked in a small whisper, returning the smile gently. Kol hummed pleasantly and moved in the bed, closer to the woman. The vampire lazily put his arm across her chest and a leg over hers, partly trapping her beneath him, skin against skin as he buried his face in then nape of her neck. Kol felt her chest vibrating under him as she let out a small chuckle.

"Come on Kol, I got work..." She told him amused, but made no attempt to push him away. The vampire groaned tiredly and snuggled closer around her.

"I remember you enjoying pillow talks." He mumbled to his defense and soon after felt her arms closing around him.

"But you're not talking," Anna pointed out with a hint of humor, "you're sleeping, you lazy ass."

Kol pulled back a little to look down at the woman beneath him.

"And who's fault is that, mh?" He questioned with a playful glint in his eyes.

"Where's that original playboy stamina of yours?" She asked with a crooked grin, looking back up at him, "You won't have me believe that you've been back for a decade without getting any?" Kol moved to rest on his elbow, next to her.

"Well, it was kinda hard to fit in between the being dead part and the five year long magical slumber part." He answered with a small shrug and looked down at his hands, "But there was this young which five years ago, Davina," The vampire said and smiled remembering her, "she was-"

"Wait, rewind!" Anna interrupted and sat up straight in the bed, "Dead? You were dead?" She asked puzzled.

"Yeah. Twice actually. First time, my mother brought me back, into this witch body after I was killed by one of the five. The second time the girl, Davina, brought me back, after Finn had killed me." Kol explained.

"And the magical slumber thing?" Anna asked, trying to understand what the original had been through since being pulled free from the dagger. Kol sighed and began explaining what had been going on in New Orleans, with Marcel becoming a super vampire, who could kill them and almost did. He told about Davina and how he had felt for her. How she had brought him back to life, but lost her own not long after.

"She does sound pretty amazing," Anna said and crooked her head, looking at the vampire with a small smile, "especially with her being able to bring you back. I guess I should be thankful to her for that."

Kol looked at the siphoner, studied her for a quiet moment, wondering how she felt about him talking passionately about another girl, like he had Davina. He had just let out everything about how she had made him feel, without a regard for who he was talking to and the thing between the two of them.

"I'm sorry..." He whispered regrettably, giving her an apologetic smile. Anna looked up at him, eyes furrowed in confusion.

"For what?" She asked, however it didn't take long for her to realize what he had referred to, when she met his eyes. When she did, Anna let out a small chuckle and waved her hand at him.

"Oh don't be silly." She said in between chuckles, "I'm not jealous. Well, I am, but don't worry about it. This is how things are, right? It's the same with Iris and Nik. When we live as long, as we do, with years apart, it's only natural to fall in love with others now and then. It comes with the lifestyle."

"Have you?" Kol then asked curiously, "Fallen in love with others?"

Anna glanced at him for a silent moment, as if trying to figure out what to answer.

"I'm a woman," She answered and leaned forward to give him a fleeting kiss, "We tend to be more sentimental."

Anna gave him a reassuring smile and got out of the bed. Kol watched her a moment from the bed, as she walked around in the bedroom, naked to gather some clothes to put on.

"You know," He began slowly, catching her attention, making her look back at him, "this new freedom... Rebekah asked me how I wanted to start this new beginning and I immediately thought about you." He said and stood up. Kol walked up to Anna, never taking his eyes off her. Reaching her, the original touched her naked arms and softly drew his fingers up alongside them, to her neck. Kol cupped her face and pulled her close. Anna closed her eyes as their foreheads touched gently. The vampire kept watching her, not wanting to or even being able to tear his eyes from her.

Anna was the woman who Kol had slowly and unknowingly fallen in love with, centuries ago, and had never been able to let go of completely. She was the first one, he had ever felt anything for. At first, it had been a fascination, with her being the first witch/vampire hybrid, the first siphoner, however with time, their shared quests, explorations of magic and the things they'd went through, had turned into a close friendship and ultimately love. Kol was a wild, bloodthirsty vampire and with Anna, he never had to worry about hurting her, but merely enjoyed her company, as they had hunted and enjoyed countless blood feasts together. From the beginning, she had been more than a lover. She had been a friend and a partner, who always had his back, when he needed her to. Be it fighting alongside him, getting most out of immortality with a little bit of fun or simply being a place, where he could just let go and be, without the stress of his family and the ever changing world around them.

"When all is said and done," Kol whispered softly and drove a hand through her hair gently, "you're the one I think about. You are the one I want to go back to. Always. You are my sacred place and the home I return to, after days, years on the battlefield."

Deep grey eyes opened slowly and glanced up at him. Anna reached up and placed her arms around his neck, pulling him down just a little.

"And I'll always be waiting, ready for you to come home from the battles..." She whispered back with a small smile, "Every and any day until the ends of time…"

* * *

 **A/N:** So well, this story could basically work as a sweet one-shot, or we could continue a little and explore the "It never ends" part, from the perspective of Anna and Kol, along with their shared history. Plus, there's this unnerving TO tradition of a tragedy happening in the aftermath of an epic declaration of love….

What do you think? Do we dare to explore this further? ;)


End file.
